The Himalayas and Harry Potter
by SansWiz
Summary: Hogwarts students travel to an ancient Oriental institution of magic. Spiced with fantasy and imagination, the story gives a different version of HBP. [Sanskrit phrases included; Setting:India-Himalayas; Language:Sanskrit and English]
1. Chapter 1

{Place: Kashmir, India; Time: Dusk; Backdrop: Himalayas

A woman sporting a flaccid saffron garb walks toward the foot of a _Siwalik_ hill. She raises her cane, traces a circular outline in the air, as if it was her routine. " _Pravisha_ "

[In Sanskrit] " _Mahodaya,_ themessage has arrived from England."

"Well?"

"Students from Hogwarts shall arrive here by the start of the monsoon."

"Good. So be it. Arrange for their requirements. The students shall in no way experience discontent."

" _Aam aacharya"}_

Place: Scotland; Time: Afternoon;

Amid great buzzing in the Hall "I can't believe the year got over soon" said Hermione

"Yeah...um...you know with Umbridge on this side and Voldemort on the other, it has been pretty rough", said Ron.

"What...did...You...Just say?" asked Hermione, with a grave expression.

"What do you mean I..I said..OH MY GOD! I just said Voldemort!"

"You're saying it again Ron", added Harry, with a hint of mirth.

"Bu..." Silence falls; Dumbledore ascends from his seat and stands in the podium. Slowly the buzzing ceased and rapt attention was directed towards the cloaked figure

"Another year gone", added Dumbledore, who never forgot to mention that phrase at the last day of every year. "Students, I must announce something. Last year the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang came to stay here in view of the Triwizard Tournament. Likewise next year, students from our school shall go to stay in another wizarding school. This school is much more ancient than Hogwarts... antediluvian than the Stonehenge...perhaps an antiquated institution. Next year, the 5th and 6th years shall accompany Professors Snape, McGonagall and Sprout to the _Moula Maantrika Mahavidyalaya,_ located in the serene valley of the Himalayas. As a reason, the 5th and 6th years shall assemble on the 31st of August rather than on the 1st of September. Therefore you shall board your train on the 29th. On the 31st, the 5th and 6th years shall be departing for India. Now, off to your train students. Goodbye." (Dumbledore takes his seat in the teachers' table)

"Where is this Himalayas exactly?", asked Ron.

"It's in South Asia", replied a dreamy voice. It was Luna Lovegood. She added, "My father and I went to the school once. It's said to be built on gemstones and platinum, quite far-fetched actually. Apart from that, the walls contain very old Sanskrit scriptures on magic."

Everyone gaped at her, "What?!", exclaimed Hermione. "Luna, you don't believe it, don't you?"

"I do Hermione", replied Luna "If it's not true, than Voldemort is a good person. The school officials actually did a _Chakshumantra,_ an optical incantation, to show the base of the structure. And in the walls, there were palimpsests, records, papers on papers, manuscripts and inscriptions. Their library is our great hall. Oh, I know to speak Sanskrit by the way. They taught it to my dad and me while we were there. I do hope to find nargles in Kashmir." She skips out of the great hall

"Whoa...well I hope to have a really great time in my home during summer", said Ron, he added "He Harry, you can join me too."

"Thank you Ron, but Dumbledore..."

"...permits you to go Harry", said Dumbledore. From nowhere the headmaster seemed to have appeared behind him. "It was an irrational decision to let you stay with the Dursleys last summer. Therefore, you along with Miss Granger, Miss Lovegood and shall stay at the Weasleys' this summer, in view with the occurrences in the Ministry."

"But sir", stated Ron, "does that mean we six are in danger?"

"You may be or may not be, , but that isn't the question. The question is why not Beauxbatons or Durmstrang but _Moula Maantrika Mahavidyalaya_? I chose the place since Voldemort's power has not reached such a global extent. Also the school has in-built magical defences, more planned and sophisticated than those at Hogwarts or any other magical school. Also, their _Pradhaana Guru,_ that is to say, their headmaster, is much older and wiser than I am. It's high time we prepare ourselves . Harry, you will be escorted by Alastor and Kingsley, to the Weasleys' a day after you arrive at the Dursleys'. Be prepared with your reflexes Harry, you can't use magic outside the school." Dumbledore exits the hall.


	2. Chapter 2

The summer at the Weasleys' was great fun, Harry could agree. But he was getting a bit restless and longed to the see the Himalayas despite himself. Throughout summer, Harry killed his time by playing Quidditch and listening to Luna's odd talk on the evolution of the Blibbering Humdingers and conspiracy theories on Merlin.

Soon, summer came to an end.

The Burrow was a flurry of activity on the day they were leaving.

"Luna, have you packed your things dear?", asked from the kitchen.

"Yes, ."

"Ron, have you packed your trunk?"

"Yeah mum."

"Well, I believe everyone has packed. Now we're reaching King's Cross by a portkey, which is charmed so that we could land invisibly near the barrier."

"But wh...", Harry was cut short of his speech by ,"No time to explain Harry dear. Come on now or the train will leave."

The portkey was a Firewhisky bottle, and slippery that one. One way or the other, they reached Platform 9 ¾ and the friends found a compartment and sat together.

"Shouldn't we be patrolling, Hermione?"

Hermione, not taking her eyes from the book, replied, "There are only 5th and 6th years, Ron."

"What's in that book anyway, Hermione?", asked Harry annoyingly. "You've been poring over it the entire summer and it's a fat book."

"Um..It's the Illustrative Guidebook for Sanskrit."

"What...Hermione..?", but before Ron could finish the sentence, the door of the compartment opened to reveal none other than Draco Malfoy.

"What are you doing here, Malfoy?", Harry growled.

Within a moment everyone took their wands and pointed it at Malfoy, for except Luna, who viewed him curiously through her steely grey eyes.

"I...I...", Malfoy stuttered and without finishing his sentence Malfoy left the compartment.

"Why did he leave without picking up a fight? Bit un-Malfoy-ish don't you think?", asked Neville.

"His father was imprisoned in Azkaban. We saw their mother in Diagon Alley the other day, didn't we Harry?", asked Ron.

"Um..yes", replied Harry indifferently, losing interest in conversation on Draco Malfoy.

"I think he wants to expiate. He did look lost.", added Luna insightfully.

"Luna, I don't think Malfoy will change. He deserves what he got.", said Harry, with no empathy for his nemesis.

The conversation ceased to continue and after a few moments the Trolley arrived. Buying as much as they can for their sojourn to the Himalayas, they packed their bags with numerous mouth-watering bonbons. Soon, the train arrived at Hogsmeade and the lot dressed in their school uniform and got down the train.

This time there was no Hagrid to welcome them since the first years will arrive only tomorrow evening. The station looked a lot less lively without the other students.

Within a few minutes they were in the Hall. The feast was set and everyone was busy chatting when Dumbledore got up and started to give instructions.

"Students, since you're going to another institution, you will again pass through certain official customs such as getting sorted to their houses. Also, since it is India, the concept of girlfriend-boyfriend is to be forgotten for they have firm moral principles. Apart from that they do not celebrate Christmas, Easter and Valentine's as most Oriental wizarding communities do not celebrate Western festivities. So you shan't be receiving such holidays and vacations.", This was met with groans and exclamations from the students. "Also, the girls shall plait their hair. Besides, everyone must get up 5:30 sharp in the morning. The rest of the instructions will be given when you go to the school."

"Oh, how I am going to hate this school.", growled Ron. His statement was met with many nods and agreements from the Gryffindors.

The entire hall that evening was immersed in opposition towards the disciplinary policies of the Himalayan school.

Finally, it was arranged that everyone would sleep at the Great Hall itself, for the journey they were going to undertake was a long, long one and so they had to start early.


	3. Chapter 3

The students woke up in the morning. They were ushered into flying machines called _vimana_ _yantras_ which will take them through a distance of 4500+ miles from Scotland to Kashmir. The school they were going to were located on the foot hills of the Pir Panjal in the Inner Himalayan region.

Breakfast was served on the _vimanas._ It was comforting to eat on a flying vehicle and see quarter of the world the same time. They travelled across Germany and glimpsed the Black, Bavarian and Bohemian forests; across Poland and Ukraine and towards Russia. Then they flew through the Oxus Valley in Central Asia and witnessed the flow of the Amu Darya. They reached Afghanistan: flew through the Hindu Kush and finally reached Kashmir.

The _vimanas_ landed on a large meadow. It contained a huge number of herbs including Himalayan Yews, Holy Basil, Jambul Trees, Saffron, Turmeric and Wood Apple. There somewhere around 60 to 80 students which included the members of Dumbledore's Army and the Malfoy Gang.

"What is that smell?" asked Ron.

"I think its basil", replied Hermione, sniffing for the source an aromatic aroma. It was extremely soothing for their olfactory senses. But before they could bask and delve into the garden, they were startled by the manifestation of 2 figures, with distinct Indian appearances.

The first one was a man, somewhere around Professor Snape's height. He wore a saffron shawl bordered by designs on a green strip, and a supple, unstitched cloth wrapped around his waist and legs and knotted in the waist. His face was round and fair skinned. His being there was in many ways similar to Dumbledore. However he did not possess of Dumbledore's aura of grand fatherliness and warmth. He had a shipshape beard that extended till his chest. His eyes were iron grey and his vision was focussed. His very presence caused the students of Hogwarts to remain silent. He had a sharp nose. Finally, to deepen the sense of inquiry among the students, he had three symmetric and horizontal white stripes on his forehead.

"I think he is a Shaivite", whispered Hermione. Ron and Harry exchanged questioning glances.

Following him was a woman wearing a blue saree. Her hair was tied into a big bun and it was circled by what looked like a cord of jasmine. Her face was lived-in and she looked as if she'd smirk if Voldemort or Dumbledore challenged her in a duel. She had jet black hair and to add with it a pair of sharp, penetrating black eyes. She had a small, straight nose and thin lips. Her forehead was covered by a round vermillion dot.

The woman began to address the gathering

'Namaste and welcome to Moula Maantrika Mahavidyalaya, one of the most premier institutions of magic in the world. I am Sita, the _Shikshanamatyaa_ of the _Bharatavarsheeya Maayamaya Parishad,_ that is, the minister of education of the Indian Magical Council, the Indian equivalent of England's Ministry of Magic. Accompanying me is the _Pradhaana Guru_ , Shrimad Jotin Dikshitah. It is very wrong on my part to keep you waiting here. Now both of us shall accompany you all to the school's premises.

Dikshitah was scrutinizing every student and unlike in England, never even bothered to cast a second glance on the Boy Who Lived. He began walking, and he was rather sprightly and brisk for a man of his age. He led the students to a foyer, which was decorated with carvings on wood and colourful Indian crafts. He halted near a door. He announced in an orotund voice:

"Now all of you shall pass through these doors. You'll be received by a group of 15 volunteers. Further instructions will be given by them. Now, go on then."

Little did the students know that it is these doors that will lead them to a year of adventure.


End file.
